


and i've got all the time it seems

by gravitropism



Series: Grad Students!AU [6]
Category: EXO (Band)
Genre: Chinguline, Fluff, Grad Students!AU, M/M, mentions of straight people
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-03-31
Updated: 2017-03-31
Packaged: 2018-10-13 07:52:45
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,776
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/10509510
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/gravitropism/pseuds/gravitropism
Summary: Chanyeol's friends actually give really good advice, once in a while.





	

**Author's Note:**

> This is part of a series. Go read the rest or it won't make sense. I'd say the series isn't long but it's getting kind of long now. Title taken from WRLD and Richard Caddock's See You.
> 
> S i d e n o t e: I don't do physics, so if the description of the lab seems sort of vague, that's because it is. I'm biochem.

The night after they drank to Rupaul’s Drag Race, Chanyeol actually manages to get up on time. His head is a little achy, and he winces when his feet hit the floor, but a couple Advil, a shower, and some food will fix him up fine. At least, well enough to get his work done for the day.

He shuffles into the shared bathroom, reaching one hand up his shirt to scratch at his stomach. He glances in the mirror. Oh, boy.

Chanyeol opens the medicine cabinet and pulls out the small bottle, struggling with the cap for a bit before shaking two of the orange pills onto the palm of his hand. He swallows them with help from a handful of water, and then strips, locking the bathroom door and climbing into the shower.

The hot water feels good on his heavy eyelids, and by the time he gets out, he’s significantly more awake. Not enough to be annoying, but this’ll do.

Shuffling into the kitchen, Chanyeol spots Baekhyun sitting at their years-old table, slurping down some noodles in a bowl. 

“Any of that left?” he asks, opening the fridge.

Baekhyun nods, and pauses in his rapid eating to reply. “Broth is in the clear container, and noodles are in the blue one. Kyungsoo dropped them off yesterday before we started.”

Chanyeol puts a hand to his heart. “Bless his tiny soul,” he says, and pulls out the containers. He finds a pot on the stove, assumedly from Baekhyun’s own noodles, and pours the broth inside. The noodles go in after the broth has been heated. He can probably add and egg and some veggies, too...

“Last night was fun, huh? Nothing too wild, but I enjoyed it more than the parties from university,” Baekhyun comments, metal chopsticks clinking against the bowl.

Chanyeol turns and leans against the counter as he waits for his broth to heat up. “Yeah, that may have something to do with the company, though. Our college friends were dumb.”

“They weren’t dumb, I’ll have you know,” Baekhyun sniffs, picking up his bowl to chug the remaining liquid. He burps and wipes his face on the back of his hand. This is why Chanyeol isn’t attracted to him, by the way. Baekhyun sniffles a few times before continuing. “They were smart, they just didn’t have their priorities in the right places.”

Chanyeol lets out a barking laugh. “That’s true. No offense, or anything, but getting plastered on a Tuesday night won’t get you to grad school.”

Baekhyun got up and walks over to the sink, bowl in hand. “It also helps when you have a daddy who will make sure you get hired right out of school, no matter what you study.” He quickly scrubs the bowl down (a habit born of being friends with Kyungsoo, who has his life together), then rinses it and leaves it to dry. His wet hands are wiped on his shirt, and he stumbles back over to his seat. 

Chanyeol notices that his broth is steaming, so he picks up a few handfuls of noodles and drops them in. “God, I hated that,” he snorts, as he cracks his egg into the pot.

There’s a creak from the hallway, and a puffy-eyed Jongin in glasses stumbles into the kitchen in a ratty t-shirt and boxers.

“I didn’t know you wore glasses,” Chanyeol says, blinking.

Jongin shrugs. “My eyes feel dry this morning. I’m probably dehydrated or something,” he says quietly, and yawns. Baekhyun gestures for him to sit at their table, and he does, putting his head down on folded arms. “I’m tired,” he whines to Baekhyun.

Baekhyun gets back up to get him a cup of water, pausing to peer at Chanyeol’s noodles. “Hey, I didn’t put an egg in mine. I want eggs, make me one.”

Chanyeol smacks him. “That’s your problem, make your own egg.” Baekhyun glares at him, but continues filling the glass, then turns back to where Jongin is sitting.

“I think he’s asleep,” Baekhyun says after a moment with a tone of disbelief in his voice. Chanyeol looks over from where he’s focused on not burning anything. Jongin’s eyes are shut, and his breathing is calm. His glasses have slipped half off his face.

Chanyeol snorts. “Tired might have been an understatement.” He takes the noodles off the heat and pours them into a bowl, scraping to get the vegetables out of the pot, and watches as Baekhyun puts the glass of water on the table, slightly out of Jongin’s reach.

“I’ll just leave that there, I guess.”

Chanyeol shrugs. “Should we let him sleep?”

Baekhyun makes a face. “Yeah, he’ll be up in a bit. Let’s go sit on the couch instead, though.”

“I thought Kyungsoo wanted us to only eat in the kitchen?” Chanyeol asks. Kyungsoo could be scary sometimes.

Baekhyun looks around slowly. “I don’t see Kyungsoo, do you?”

Chanyeol happily sits on the couch next to Baekhyun and eats his noodles.

“By the way,” Baekhyun says idly, flicking through the channels on the TV, “How’s that thing with Yixing going? You two were awfully cuddly last night.”

Chanyeol groans. “It’s like he’s fine with cuddling, but he won’t do anything else. I’ve thought about asking him out, but he’d probably think it’s just as friends.”

Baekhyun snorts. “I’m sorry, dude. Maybe you should make an actual move and do it.”

“Yeah, that’ll go real well,” Chanyeol mutters into his noodles, “He’s clearly not into me.”

Baekhyun pats his back. “Then you have to make him into you. Like, do squats or something. Your ass is pretty flat, you know.”

Chanyeol could tell already that wasn’t going to work. “I dunno, Baek, I just feel like he’s not even remotely interested. The only thing I’ve seen him looking at is Sehun’s butt, and everyone looks at Sehun’s butt.”

“He does have a nice butt,” Baekhyun comments. “I think you need to put up more of a fight before you quit, though.”

“I’ll try,” Chanyeol sighs, and slurps down the rest of the broth.

\--

A week later Chanyeol is working with Minseok in the lab as usual. He clicks the detector on, then connects the power to his experiment and sits back. This will take about half an hour to complete, so in the meantime he can do some tidying.

Minseok ambles over, some equipment in hand. He sets it down on the workbench, and pulls out a screwdriver. “This one’s broken again,” he sighs, working on unscrewing the face, “I swear to god, that’s the third time in as many days. Lee should stop making us fix it and just buy a new one, it would probably save us a lot of time.”

Chanyeol snorts. “Yeah, it’s wishful thinking, though. That one’s surprisingly expensive for what it does. I wonder if it would be cheaper to buy the parts and put it together, actually...”

“It might be, seeing as I could probably assemble it in less than thirty minutes. I’ve fixed this so many times that it wouldn’t be hard,” Minseok chuckles. “By the way, have you met Yixing’s new girlfriend?”

Chanyeol pauses. Wait, what? “Sorry, what?”

“Yixing’s new girlfriend, have you met her?” Minseok asks absentmindedly. “She works in an orgo lab, why anyone would want to do that is beyond me, but she’s really smart. And pretty, hell, even I blushed when talking to her, and I haven’t had a girlfriend since high school.”

Chanyeol’s hands are frozen from where he’s been polishing a piece of equipment with a dust cloth. Yixing has a girlfriend? “Yixing’s new girlfriend,” he repeats.

Minseok gives him a strange look. “Yes, Yixing’s new girlfriend.”

“I... I didn’t know he was straight,” Chanyeol says. He can feel some sort of emotion growing inside him, but his face is numb.

“Yeah, I’ve even heard him mutter about boobs in his sleep. He’s pretty straight.”

“Oh,” Chanyeol says shortly. He’s a balloon, swelling up and ready to burst.

Minseok pauses in his work, setting the screwdriver down. “Did you like him or something?” Chanyeol nods mutely. “Oh, shit, Chanyeol, I’m sorry,” he says, reaching over to rub Chanyeol’s shoulder.

Chanyeol is determined not to cry here. “But he watched RuPaul’s Drag Race with us; you can’t be straight and watch that show in the same room as a bunch of gay guys.”

Minseok sighs, still rubbing Chanyeol’s back comfortingly. Chanyeol appreciates that. “Yeah, well, apparently you can, because Yixing’s girlfriend is the picture of femininity. Although he might be bisexual or something, I’m not sure.”

Chanyeol lets out a shuddery breath, and continues polishing. “It’s fine. He’s dating someone, and I just have to get over it. It was a long shot, anyway.”

“Well, if you want to talk about it, I’ll listen, and I’m sure you could persuade Baekhyun to sit still if you gave him food,” Minseok comments, getting back to work himself.

Chanyeol actually laughs at this. He can’t stay sad for long, really. “That’s actually how I get him to behave when he’s excited. Normally he’s the calm one but sometimes he goes wild.”

Minseok laughs. “I bet.”

\--

Chanyeol heads home around five after finishing his work for the day. He’s satisfied with what he’s accomplished, but he’s still a little bummed out about Yixing. Maybe some talking with Baekhyun, Kyungsoo, and Jongdae will help.

He opens his door to find Jongdae’s ass planted on Kyungsoo’s chest. Kyungsoo is wheezing and hitting Jongdae with his fists while Baekhyun laughs and tries to contain Kyungsoo’s legs.

“Uh...” Chanyeol says, dropping his bag. “I’m not sure I want to know?”

“Oh, hi, Chanyeol!” Baekhyun says cheerfully, giving up and sitting on Kyungsoo’s shins to hold him down. “It’s fine, we wanted to order pizza but Kyungsoo said he would make dinner, but we really wanted pizza so we’re preventing him from cooking.”

“No... you’re... just being... a dick,” Kyungsoo chokes out, flailing even harder, “Let... me... up!”

“Can we order pizza?” Jongdae asks, batting his eyelashes.

“Fine!”

Jongdae and Baekhyun whoop, and climb off Kyungsoo, who takes a few moments to catch his breath. Chanyeol laughs, and walks over to give him a hand up, which he gratefully takes. Baekhyun is already on his phone, dialing the pizza place.

“How was your day?” Kyungsoo asks him, dusting lint off his clothes. Oh, right.

“Not too great,” Chanyeol says sadly, “Apparently Yixing has a girlfriend.”

Kyungsoo looks up at him. “Aww, Chanyeol, I’m sorry.” He pulls Chanyeol into a hug, and Chanyeol takes the opportunity to cling to him. Hugs from Kyungsoo are few and far between, but he’s small and cuddly, so Chanyeol relishes every second.

Baekhyun finishes placing his order, and raises an eyebrow at them. “What’s up?” he asks, standing and joining in the hug. Jongdae yelps and follows, causing the other three to sway and nearly fall when he collides with them.

“Yixing has a girlfriend,” Chanyeol mutters into Baekhyun’s hair.

Jongdae squeezes tighter. “I didn’t know he was straight, that sucks, dude.”

“Neither did I,” Kyungsoo says, his thumb rubbing against Chanyeol’s back.

“Me neither,” Baekhyun says mournfully. “That’s rough, buddy.”

“Thanks, guys.” Chanyeol can feel his eyes starting to get a little watery, and he sniffles. “I... guess not everything could work out. He wasn’t really reciprocating, anyway.”

Jongdae drags the group back so they’re all piled on the couch on top of one another. Chanyeol feels warm and comfortable, and the urge to cry goes away.

“You guys are the best,” he says, pushing his face into Baekhyun’s shirt. Baekhyun just pats his ass.

“Of course we’re the best, we’re always there in case of nasty straight boys.”

Chanyeol sighs. “I mean, we don’t know for sure that he’s straight, he could be bi or something. But he has a girlfriend right now, and that means I can’t have him.”

Kyungsoo makes a comforting noise. “Just think of him as straight. It’ll help you get over it if you tell yourself you weren’t in his consideration. Because you’re wonderful, Chanyeol, and only a completely straight dude couldn’t see that.”

Chanyeol can feel the tears pricking at his eyes again. “Aww, thanks, Kyungsoo,” he says, and squeezes tighter. Kyungsoo makes some choking noises until he loosens his grip, but Chanyeol knows that secretly he enjoys it.

“Any time, Chanyeol,” Kyungsoo mutters, “Now let me out, I’m going to suffocate.”

\--

Lunchtime a week later includes Chanyeol, Minseok, Jongdae, Sehun, and Jongin. Kyungsoo and Baekhyun are off at some conference today, and Yixing is... Chanyeol doesn’t actually want to think about where Yixing is, because he’s probably on a date with his girlfriend.

Speaking of which. Chanyeol lets his head drop to the table with a soft thud. “Why me?” he asks, rhetorically, to the table in general.

“Still thinking about Yixing?” Jongdae says sympathetically. Chanyeol gives a little groan of assent.

Sehun reaches over to give him a smack on the shoulder. Chanyeol grunts; Sehun hits hard. “I’m sorry about that, man, but you should have just said something, and then maybe this wouldn’t be so bad. Not that I’m saying what you feel right now isn’t valid, or anything, but you know.”

Chanyeol lifts his head up. “Yeah, I know,” he says, straightening and going back to attacking the jjajangmyeon that Kyungsoo had made for them the night before. He was stressed about the conference, which started a bout of stress-cooking, which resulted in delicious Korean food. No offence to Chanyeol’s mother, but Kyungsoo’s jjajangmyeon is the best. “Still, though, I’ve felt like shit for the past week. My students even noticed that I looked more tired than usual.”

Jongin giggles at this. “Probably because you normally look like you stuck a fork in an outlet.”

“It’s the static electricity,” Minseok mumbles into his own container of noodles. Kyungsoo made a lot. They’re going to be eating Korean food for days, not that Chanyeol is complaining.

Sehun sits back in his chair and stretches. “Looks like it’s just you and I who are single, then, Chanyeol?”

Chanyeol pauses in his eating momentarily to watch the way Sehun’s shirt climbs up his stomach a little bit. “Huh?” he says, startled. “What about Jongdae?”

“Yeah, what about me?”

“You’re basically dating Junmyeon, aren’t you?” Minseok asks, finishing up his food.

Jongdae sighs. “No, I’m not. Are there feelings? Yes, quite possibly. Are we dating? No, definitely not. He barely makes any time for me, and we’re good friends. Junmyeon is just too busy for anything like that.”

“That sounds like a problem,” Chanyeol comments, chewing on a bit of pork.

“It is. He spends more time working that he does breathing, I think,” Jongdae says, running a hand through his hair and messing it all up. 

Minseok snorts and smooths it back down for him. “You’ll live. I think he just needs a good talking to? Or at some point he’ll pass out and you can be there at his hospital bed to talk some sense into him,” he says comfortingly.

“I’d really rather it not get to that point,” Jongdae winces, one eyebrow raised.

“I know what you mean,” Chanyeol sighs, and finishes off his remaining noodles. “Maybe you should talk to him before that happens.”

“I’ll try,” Jongdae says, looking down, “But he’s probably not going to respond in any meaningful way.”

“No harm in trying,” Sehun says, and Chanyeol meets his gaze. It’s steely, something he wasn’t expecting from Sehun.

\--

Weeks later Chanyeol is lying on his couch. Baekhyun is doing something with Jongin on the other couch, and Sehun is lying like a starfish on the carpet, limbs in every direction.

“I’m exhausted,” Chanyeol says. It’s ten at night on Friday night, and usually he wants to do something. “Minseok and I were super busy today, it’s no wonder he decided to go to bed.”

“I didn’t think grad school would be this tiring,” Sehun admits, rolling over onto his stomach. “I’ve got a whole packet of readings to do tomorrow. I don’t know if I’ll even have time to eat.”

Chanyeol looks over at him. “I hope you’re not actually reading all of those.”

“Of course not,” Sehun snorts, “I skim them like you’re supposed to. I’m just a little behind, so it’s going to take a while.”

“We should clean tomorrow, too,” Jongin butts in, “I have a lot of reading, too, but not as much as you. You do the laundry so you can read while you wait?”

“Fine with me,” Sehun says.

“Jongin, I want ice cream,” Baekhyun states, poking him. “And we don’t have any. Come to the store with me?”

“I want mint chip, if you’re going,” Chanyeol says.

“Strawberry for me,” Sehun adds.

“If you want it, give me money. I’m not paying for all of that,” Jongin grumbles, but gets up anyway and pulls Baekhyun off the couch. “I’m assuming you guys won’t permanently adhere to the floor and couch respectively while we’re gone?”

Chanyeol waves him off by throwing a five from his wallet at him. Maybe with some sugar he can muster up the energy for a couple rounds of whatever game is in the console right now. He’s too tired to change it, to be honest.

Baekhyun and Jongin stumble out the door, and Chanyeol and Sehun are left alone in the apartment. “Anything new, Sehun?” Chanyeol asks in attempts to make some conversation.

“Not really.”

“Huh.”

They lapse into silence for a while. Chanyeol can feel his eyelids starting to flutter shut, but if Sehun is here he needs to stay awake. Well. Does he really? No, fuck it, he’s going to bed, Baekhyun can put the ice cream in the freezer for breakfast.

Chanyeol makes to get up, but Sehun stops him.

“So you liked Yixing, huh?”

Chanyeol blinks. “Yeah. But, like, I’m trying to get over it? I’m less sad and more annoyed right now. Why do you ask?”

“Oh, just because.” Sehun’s looking at his nails. People only do that when they have an actual reason, right?

“Really?”

Sehun looks over at him. “Yup.”

“Really really?”

Sehun looks vaguely annoyed. “You know I like you, right?” he says.

Chanyeol slumps back on the couch. “No, I didn’t know that. Seriously?”

“Yes, seriously,” Sehun hisses, “I wouldn’t joke about that.”

“Huh.” Chanyeol did not see this coming. He wonders how long this has been going on, and how he didn’t notice. He can usually pick up on signals pretty well. “Why didn’t you say anything earlier?”

Sehun rolls over so he’s facing away from Chanyeol. “Because I don’t want to be some kind of rebound. If you’re not over Yixing, I don’t want to date you, so don’t even think about giving me a pity date.”

“I... honestly didn’t even consider dating you.”

Sitting up, Sehun glares at him. “Thanks, Chanyeol. That’s really comforting. Now do you understand why I didn’t want to say anything? I’m starting to regret it already.”

Chanyeol panics a little bit. He doesn’t want to hurt Sehun, and it’s not that he dislikes him. He just hasn’t really thought about doing... stuff with him before, because he’s known and liked Yixing longer than Sehun has been in his life. “No, don’t regret it, I’ve just been... busy? With my thing for Yixing, like too busy to notice anybody else.”

Sehun slumps back down. “I guess. It still sounds like you’re going to pity date me, though, and I really don’t want that.”

“Neither do I, trust me! It’s just a shitty situation,” Chanyeol says frantically.

“Are you saying I shouldn’t have told you?”

“No! It’s fine, it’s fine, I just... don’t expect me to make a decision just yet? You want me to be over my feelings for Yixing before I decide anything. So that’s what I’ll do, okay?” Chanyeol reasons, “When I’m over Yixing, I’ll think about it then. Objectively. I’ll even make a pro and con list, if you want.”

Sehun lets out a shuddery sigh. “Fine. I just. I feel like I’ve made things awkward between us now.”

Chanyeol won’t have that. “Noooooo,” he says, and slithers down from the couch. He wraps his long arms and legs around Sehun’s noodle body, and holds him tight. Sehun stiffens. “And I’m doing this because I’m your friend, not because I want to pity date you,” he says firmly. “We’re friends, and what you just told me won’t change that.”

Sehun relaxes slightly, and he throws a leg over Chanyeol’s. “Don’t you find it a little weird, though? To be hugging like this with someone who just confessed to you?”

“It’s fine unless you pop a boner, then we’re gonna have to stop.”

Sehun lets out a peal of laughter, and it’s like all the tension is draining out of him. “Honestly, I’m too nervous to do that.”

That surprises Chanyeol. “You don’t seem nervous? In fact, I don’t think I’ve ever seen you visibly nervous.”

Snorting, Sehun smacks Chanyeol’s shoulder. “I just don’t show nervousness like other people. Everyone gets nervous sometimes. Um,” he says, and clears his throat, “You promise we won’t be awkward after tonight?”

“Yep. If I’m being dumb just punch me. I’ll do the same to you.”

Sehun lets out a breath. “Thanks, Chanyeol. I’m. I’m glad you’re like this.”

Chanyeol leans in and burps softly in Sehun’s ear, causing him to screech. “You’re welcome,” he says, and Sehun smacks him.

“I’m not going to like you if you keep that up, dammit.”

They’re still play-fighting when Baekhyun and Jongin come back from the store. 

“Well this looks cozy,” Baekhyun announces, and holds up the bag. “If you guys want to stop, we have ice cream.”

Chanyeol rolls onto his back, winded. He could make this work.

\--

It’s been a while. About a month since Chanyeol found out Yixing has a girlfriend. He doesn’t feel the clench in his stomach when Yixing walks by, and when the other man punched him in jest yesterday, Chanyeol only had laughter. No more pangs of longing.

So when he, Baekhyun, Kyungsoo, and Jongdae are out for pizza (just the four of them, for memory’s sake), he decides that now would be a good time to bring up Sehun’s feelings for him. He’s tried his best to block the knowledge out of his mind the past two weeks, just to be as objective as possible. Chanyeol really doesn’t want to disappoint Sehun.

The waiter sets the pizza on the table in front of them. Jongdae winks and gives his thanks, and the poor guy scrambles, blushing, away from the table.

“Um, guys,” Chanyeol starts, taking a slice for himself, “Sehun likes me. He told me about two weeks ago.”

Kyungsoo and Baekhyun are both surprised, but Jongdae lifts an eyebrow. “Well, duh.”

Baekhyun immediately turns on him. “I totally didn’t notice! No way in hell did you notice.”

Jongdae shrugs and takes a bite. “Reading Sehun is an art, you just have to know what to look for. He’s not very expressive facially, so you need to read his body language.”

“And how the hell do you know this, huh?” Kyungsoo snorts, “It’s not like you spend a lot of time with him.”

“Maybe I have the benefit of not being distracted by a boyfriend,” Jongdae snipes back, making a face. “I’m not making any progress with Junmyeon. Anyway, back to Chanyeol. How do you feel about this, and why did you take so long to tell us?”

Chanyeol swallows. “He specified that he didn’t want to be a pity date, and told me I should get over Yixing first. Well, I’m over Yixing now, so what should I do?”

“Either date him or don’t, I don’t see what the problem is,” Kyungsoo says bluntly. “Are you into him?”

“Chanyeol’s feelings are more delicate than that, Kyungsoo,” Baekhyun says, and gets a slap from Kyungsoo in return. “This has more than one dimension.”

“I don’t not like him, but I’m not enamored, either,” Chanyeol sighs, “Which is why I’m not sure what to do.”

“Okay, so we’re working with middling ground,” Jongdae muses. “Hmm. Do you think he’s hot?”

Chanyeol thinks about Sehun’s butt. “Yeah, he’s hot.”

“Well, that’s one mark in the positive direction. Just do it,” Kyungsoo says, and continues eating.

“Problem is Chanyeol can’t date him for shits and giggles,” Baekhyun reasons, “He’s a friend, and you need to be serious about this, because it could affect all of us.”

“Dammit, good point,” Kyungsoo concedes. “Okay, would you be upset if Sehun dated someone else?”

Chanyeol has to think about this one for a little longer. What if Sehun started dating, say, Taemin? “I’m not really sure. I think I’d be a little disappointed, at least?”

“Would that be because his attention is flattering, or because you want to date Sehun instead?”

“I don’t know!” Chanyeol buries his head in his arms. “I don’t want to be a dick.”

“Maybe you should just go on a date with him,” Jongdae suggests. “Keep it casual, like a movie alone together or something. That way you can get to know him and feel out the atmosphere.”

Chanyeol nods slowly. “But what if it doesn’t work out?”

“Then let him down lightly, and apologize. You managed to stay friends even though you knew he liked you, give him a couple weeks alone and I’m sure he’ll get over it. Nothing has to change,” Baekhyun says, patting Chanyeol’s head.

“But what if it goes well?”

“Then date him, for fuck’s sake!” Kyungsoo says, maybe a little too loud for inside a restaurant. “That’s what I’ve been trying to say all along.”

“I guess,” Chanyeol says. “I don’t want to hurt him.”

“That’s a good sign, then,” Jongdae says, and finishes off his first slice. “Go for it, Chanyeol. You have no way of knowing what will happen, so just go for it.”

“Okay,” Chanyeol says slowly, “I’ll talk to him the next time we meet.”

“That’s my boy,” Baekhyun says, and gropes his thigh. Chanyeol laughs, and hits him.

\--

They’re all walking back from a play put on by the school. One of Jongdae’s favorite students acted in it, and he had suggested they all go. Chanyeol sat next to Sehun, and was aware of the other’s light breathing throughout the entire show.

He pulls back from his place next to Baekhyun to walk alongside Sehun, intentionally slowing down a little to distance them from the rest of the group.

“It was good, huh?” he starts out inelegantly.

“Yeah, it was good. I could tell you liked it; your reactions were funny,” Sehun laughs quietly.

Chanyeol scratches the back of his head, slightly embarrassed. “Sorry, did it bother you?”

“No, not at all,” Sehun grins, “It actually made it more fun to watch.”

“Alright, then that’s okay,” Chanyeol says, and pauses. How should he go about asking Sehun on a date? “So I’ve been thinking.”

Sehun lifts an eyebrow. “Oh?”

“Okay, I know you’re judging me, but stop for a second.”

Sehun’s laugh overwhelms the sound of the other’s conversation, drifting up into the chilly night air. Chanyeol thinks he hears someone yell “shut up, oh my god,” but he’s too busy watching the way Sehun’s face lights up. Chanyeol feels lighter himself.

“I can stop for a second, I guess,” Sehun allows, still shaking off residual giggles. Chanyeol has to run a hand through his hair to clear his head.

“Right, yeah. Thanks. I’ve been thinking about us, and you. Not for long, I mean. Over the past week. I’ve been over Yixing for a while now,” Chanyeol blurts out.

Sehun pauses. “Oh.”

Chanyeol coughs. “Yeah. Um. Well. Once I got my head out of the clouds, you’re... really cute. And not telling you every little detail about my life these past three weeks has been hell, a little bit. I think we’re closer than I originally realized.”

“Oh,” Sehun says again. There’s something about the expression on his face that makes Chanyeol want to latch onto him and stay there forever.

Chanyeol plows on ahead. “So, do you think you’d like to go on a date with me sometime?”

“And it for sure isn’t a pity date?” Sehun says, and he may or may not be joking.

“For sure,” Chanyeol affirms. “I even talked to Kyungsoo, Baekhyun, and Jongdae to make sure.”

Sehun relaxes and rolls his eyes. “Well, I guess I’ll have to trust their judgement on this one,” he jokes, and his elbow rubs up against Chanyeol’s arm. 

His skin is warm, even though it’s getting colder out.

**Author's Note:**

> o m g f r e n d thanks for reading. Next part will be out in less than a month. i w i l l s e e t h i s t h r o u g h.


End file.
